Masters Theses

Date of Award

5-1992

Degree Type

Thesis

Degree Name

Master of Science

Major

Textiles and Clothing

Major Professor

Larry C. Wadsworth

Committee Members

Kermit E. Duckett, Gajanan Bhat

Abstract

Laminates of cotton and/or ramie and thermally fusible binder fiber materials have been developed for applications such as hospital operating room fabrics, diapers, and feminine hygiene products to take advantage of the good strength and comfort properties of cellulosic fibers and also the fact that these are biodegradable fibers. The development of laminates takes three important parameters into consideration: precursor web parameters, staple fiber web parameters, and thermal bonding process parameters. Samples were made using combinations of the three parameters. The samples were tested for properties desired in the resultant laminates. The primary objective of Part A of this study was to take different ratios of cotton and synthetic fibers along with melt blown webs as the outer layers to produce fabrics for medical apparel having a range of strength and barrier properties. Repellency characteristics of the laminates were improved by applying a fluorochemical finish. The weight of the precursor melt blown webs, and top and bottom roll temperatures appeared to have a notable effect on the barrier and strength properties of the laminates. The fluorochemical finish was found to further enhance the barrier and repellency properties. The Wilcoxon Signed Rank statistical analysis technique was used to determine if the difference in was significant at the 0.05 level properties between unfinished and finished laminates. The objectives of Part B of this study were to develop laminates from combinations of natural fibers with melt blown and/or spunbond webs as the outer layers and to characterize their water wicking, absorbency and retention capacities. Cotton and ramie were utilized in the core to take advantage of the excellent wicking and absorbency of these fibers as well as the fact that they are renewable and biodegradable fibers for such applications as personal hygiene products, baby and adult diapers, and incontinent pads. The weight of the staple fiber and precursor webs and the type of the precursor webs were found to have notable effects on the absorbency and strength properties of the laminates. Spunbond fabrics were found to enhance the strength of the laminates as well as the absorbency by providing a more open structure compared to melt blown webs.

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